Snow Monkey and Zenko Ji Temple Exploration with Sake Tasting in Nagano

Embark on a full-day adventure in Nagano, Japan, exploring the serene Zenko-ji temple, indulging in sake tasting, and visiting the famous Snow Monkey Park. Enjoy a typical Japanese meal and immerse yourself in the beauty of these iconic attractions.

Duration: 10 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Zenko-ji Temple - Discover Zenko Ji Temple, one of the oldest Buddhist temples and a Registered National Treasure. With nearly 1400 years of history filled with legends and myths, your English-speaking guide will lead you through the temple, allowing you to explore its rich heritage.
  • MONZEN TERRACE ENYA - Experience luxury in Nagano with…
What's Included
  • Private transportation
  • In-vehicle air conditioning
  • All fees and/or taxes
What's Not Included
  • Lunch
  • entry tickets
Additional Information

On this full-day journey, see two of the great sights close to Nagano. Discover the serene grounds of Zenko-ji, a beautiful temple famous for its ancient Buddhist statue. Before traveling down a lovely woodland walk to the home of the snow monkeys, a troop of native macaques renowned for their ability to live in the snow and bathe in the nearby hot…

Location
Zenko-ji Temple
I-491 Nagano Motoyoshicho
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.7
(33 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Megan
Jan 16, 2025
Snow monkeys - An amazing day, our guide Bhatti had fantastic local knowledge and showed us some amazing sights around Nagano. It was amazing to see the snow monkeys in their natural environment. Thank you Bhatti
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Weekendtravelor_10
Jan 9, 2025
Buy your Sake in Nagano - Another Tip re this tour. If you like any of the sake from the Sake tasting buy it theree or buy at the Nagano Train station (Me Dor Re shop). You will have a hard time, if even possible to buy these Brands in Tokyo
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Annwv8894bt
Jan 9, 2025
Completely planned to our pace - Bhatti picked us up from our hotel in Nagano and took us to the Monkey Park, sake brewery and Zenkoji Temple. Bhatti made sure the walking was at our pace and didn't give us time limits on any activity. Bhatti also showed us an amazing restaurant where we had lunch again no time limits. It was a very enjoyable and relaxed day and we saw a lot.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Tjiubtcs
Jan 4, 2025
Nagano Day Tour with Bhatti – Snow Monkeys, Sake, and Zenkoji” - The day tour with Bhatti covered Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park, a sake brewery, and Zenkoji Temple. The schedule was well-organized, and the visit to the snow monkey park went smoothly. Bhatti shared useful information during the drive and at the brewery. When we arrived at Zenkoji Temple, it was crowded, so Bhatti dropped us off while he parked. We explored the temple on our own but had some background from Bhatti beforehand. Appreciated his kindness to lend us a pair of spikes to avoid us from slipping.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lulunz1
Jan 4, 2025
Spectacular Day at Monkey Park and Togakushi - We had the pleasure of having Bhati as our tour guide today, and he was absolutely fantastic. From the start, he was incredibly flexible and knowledgeable, which made our day one of the standout highlights of our 4-week trip to Japan. Bhati kindly accommodated our request for an early pick-up so we could beat the crowds at the Monkey Park. His suggestion worked perfectly—we enjoyed a peaceful walk through the forest and arrived at a quiet viewing area to see the monkeys relaxing in their onsen, surrounded by snow. Since we’d already visited Zenkoji Temple, we asked if we could explore Togakushi instead. Bhati made it happen, and it turned out to be an unforgettable experience. The walk through the deep snow and ancient cedar forest to the upper Togakushi Shrine was absolutely breathtaking. Without Bhati’s guidance, we never would’ve never been able to get to such a magical place. It was a day we’ll always remember, and we can’t thank Bhati enough for making it so special. If you’re looking for a tour guide in Japan, we’d wholeheartedly recommend him!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Onjirap2017
Jan 4, 2025
Snow money Tour - Ali was our driver and tour guide. He is very punctual and flexible with your needs. We went to the area during the New Year celebration so expected heavy crowds, however he was patiently enough to wait around and pick us up when needed.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Passport46955759027
Jan 2, 2025
Amazing day in Nagano - Bhatti was an amazing guide we have a very lovely and relaxing day around nagano thanks to him! We enjoyed his recommendations for lunch, saki, and he helped us navigate the icy trail to the snow monkey park. we also allowed more time at certain attractions since we had a toddler with us and we were really lucky to slow down and enjoy the sights on our time. I highly recommend this as our guide made it enjoyable to sit back relax and enjoy the day!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Maria
Dec 24, 2024
Great time at snow monkey park! - Bhatti is an excellent tour guide. We traveled with our four teenage sons and they were very pleased with the trip. Bhatti is patient and explained everything about the tour. He answered all our questions and made sure we knew where we were and gave us a lot of time to explore. I highly recommend this tour if you want to explore snow monkey park leisurely.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Voyage11013105786
Dec 23, 2024
Snow monkey and sake - The drive from hotel to the snow monkeys was amazing relaxing and friendly. Once there he guided us to the start of the monkey park where he dropped us off. Extremely friendly very good English and knowledgeable about the country. We did a fun sake tour and the saw a great sweets store. Highly recommend. 5 stars
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Maps19373733757
Jan 3, 2025
Rough Start, Good ending - At the start of our trip we were a bit skeptical since we initially thought this was supposed to be a guided tour. There were a lot of details missing and not very clear communication on the tour operators part. The itinerary was layed out but it was essentially a “do it ourselves” kind of trip with a private chauffeur. Our driver was helpful and cool to talk too in spite of some language barriers and the circumstances both of us were placed in. I expected more from a TripAdvisor tour but I guess every tour company is different. Now the tour Itself was pretty good once we got there. We were able to see the snow monkeys but the path up was very slippery especially this time of year. Recommend you buy the snow chains for your shoes if you don’t have firm boots. Especially with there being deep hills that could cause people to fall of into infinity. We later went to Zekoji temple and were able to get our goushin books signed since we’ve been hitting a lot of shrines.It was a pretty good end to the day. I wish we were able to experience the full trip but time was limited for some locations so we made sure to go to the most popular ones. We ended up taking the bullet train home so we could let our driver go since he travelled so far to get us. Overall this trip was pretty good for the most part. I would recommend going through another tour operator outside of this one for a better experience however I just think that for some things at certain prices we should be getting as much out of it as we are paying for.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Select Date and Tickets
up to 6 guests
1
Traveler
January 2025
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Today